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Tracking Flight Path of US Airways 1549

nytimes.com

1–10 of 18 posts

Re: Tracking Flight Path of US Airways 1549

#3
post #2

Nicely done! Long Live the NYTimes!

I agree. It's a slick, easy-to-understand analysis of the crash.

It also shows quick thinking on the part of the pilot. If they hadn't decided to ditch the plane in the river instead of continuing to the airport, it probably would have come up short and crash landed in an urban area. A lot of people owe the flight crew their lives, not just the passengers.

Re: Tracking Flight Path of US Airways 1549

#4
Pretty cool; but amateurs can do almost as well with Google maps and Google Earth: http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2009/01/short-flight-of-...

Teterboro must have been really tempting, a successful ditching is anything but a sure thing, if one of the wings had caught the water before the other the plane would have started tumbling at over 100mph.

Re: Tracking Flight Path of US Airways 1549

#8

Pretty cool; but amateurs can do almost as well with Google maps and Google Earth: http://googlemapsmania.blogspot.com/2009/01/short-flight-of-... Teterboro must have been really tempting, a successful ditching is anything but a sure thing, if one of the wings had caught the water before the other the plane would have started tumbling at over 100mph.

the pilot is said to be an experienced glider pilot, probably helped in this situation

Re: Tracking Flight Path of US Airways 1549

#9
A common mistake by small plane pilots is to try and make a U-turn and glide back to the airport. It usually doesn't work since you lose so much altitude during the turns. This pilot seemed to do an amazing job of finding the best glide rate and not turning too much - and then somehow figuring out how to land the plane in the water.

Re: Tracking Flight Path of US Airways 1549

#10
post #5

It looks like the pilot decided to not take the chance to land on the small airport, as if he wanted to avoid the risk to crash into the city.

That's a good point. With both engines out to provide reverse thrust and likely little if any emergency landing facilities at Teterboro, he probably made the right choice.
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